The Voice: The highs and lows of the first live show

Will provided the entertainment in the first Voice live show (Picture: BBC)

Much though I have enjoyed this series of The Voice, I have always struggled with the format of the live shows – and last night’s quarter-final was no exception. There were some terrific moments, but also enough low notes that left me feeling unsatisfied.

Let’s start with the highs. Jermain’s booming baritone lit up Bruno Mars’ Treasure. Sally Barker brought a tear to my eye with The Bee Gees’ To Love Somebody. Will played the court jester with his penchant for puns and melodramatically milking the moment.

And that was about it for me as far as positives went.

Here are a few areas where I feel there’s scope for improvement in the final two shows.

This issue solves itself after this week but does anyone else feel a little cheated that, in the first week in which the public was able to exercise its opinions, the coaches’ fast passes meant that we only actually got to select half of the final eight?

Having said that, I did think the coaches selected the right singers to receive an automatic semi-final place: Jermain, Jamie, Sally and Christina Marie.

2. Fewer obscure/bizarre song choices

Iesher sang Rather Be (Picture: BBC)

With only three live shows in which to win over the public, song selection matters more than ever. Personally, I would expect to hear well-known songs that establish the kind of niche each act is looking to occupy in the industry. So, for instance, Iesher singing Rather Be made a lot of sense.

But exactly why Lee performed Kris Kristofferson’s country staple Help Me Make It Through The Night is anyone’s guess. His performance left me bemused, and it was a song that just didn’t suit him.

Similarly, Jamie and Emily singing A Thousand Miles and Happy – songs by Vanessa Carlton and Pharrell Williams – were equally odd choices.

3. Genuine critique

Was there a single even vaguely critical comment from any of the coaches tonight? I’ve enjoyed the bonhomie between Will, Tom, Kylie and Ricky, but I found the endless stream of gushing praise tiresome, particularly when there were a number of nervous performances and questionable song choices worthy of being challenged.

For instance, did Rachael’s off-key performance of McFly’s Shine A Light really deserve to be passed with flying colours? Not for me.

Sorry, but I just didn’t buy the merry dance that Will led us on after Iesher’s performance. She said she had messed up a little bit. He offered her a second chance to get it right. The band curiously knew exactly which point in the song to pick up from.

But giving a contestant the opportunity to rectify a mistake looks a lot like favouritism to me.

Having said all of the above, I’m still really looking forward to next week, though.

My money’s on the winner being either Jermain or Sally. You can laugh at me next week when they both get knocked out …

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